The Brady Left Behind
by BelStar
Summary: The youngest one in curls? Cindy Brady has now hit her teenage years, and as the family heads North to spend Christmas with relatives, it seems that she isn't everybody's darling now. New chapter added to take Cindy through to January.
1. Teenage-itis

"You used to laugh at them", cried Cindy. "You used to laugh at all those girls in your class who were fat and zitty, and now you laugh at me behind my back. I hate you, Peter!"

With that, 13-year old Cindy Brady ran up the stairs, into the girls' room and started crying. "I do no such thing", protested Peter. "Just leave it now, son", advised Mike. Carol sighed and shook her head. The Bradys had been in the middle of packing in order to drive north to meet Greg, who was now a Freshman at the University of Oregon, and to spend Christmas with Mike's brother Jeff. Carol wasn't sure that Jeff, or even Greg, would recognize Cindy now. Since Greg had left for college, adolescence had hit the youngest Brady hard, leaving her with pimples, puppy fat and the kind of volatility that Carol could really do without. Added to this, her baby girl still had to wear braces; and was none too thrilled about having to wear a bra as well.

Carol walked past Mike, briefly touching his arm. Mike took the hint and followed his wife into the den. "I just feel terrible for her, Mike", she said, once they were in there. "She's going through hormone hell."

Mike's face showed concern. "I think we've allowed ourselves to get complacent", he said. "Cindy was always such a cheery girl while Marcia and Jan were going through that whole stage of being temperamental and worrying about their looks. We had Marcia's braces, Jan's glasses -we just never thought we'd go through the same thing with her."

"I think I'd be temperamental if I had to meet family when I'd put on weight and I couldn't do anything about my acne", sighed Carol. "Poor Cindy – we've tried every skin product in the drugstore, she gets plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables to eat. And Alice and I daren't buy anything at all sugary or fattening these days because she says it'll make her worse."

"Sounds like she's getting paranoid", said Mike.

"I remember telling her that she took after her Grandma Martin", Carol observed, referring to her ex-mother in law. "Perhaps I should get in touch with her again and ask her if she went through a stage like Cindy's. Oh boy", she said ruefully, that would be something. Hi Rose, remember me? It's Carol!"

Just at that moment, there was a knock on the door. "Come in", called Mike. It was Jan.

"Mom and Dad", she told them, "Cindy's still in our room. She's left off packing, and she says she's not coming with us to Oregon." Carol thought quickly. "Mike", she said to her husband. "I'll go upstairs first. If we're not downstairs in a few minutes, then come up after us." Mike nodded, and Carol hurried up to the girls' room.

When she got there, she found Cindy lying face-down on her bed with her loose blonde hair spread out on the pillow. Whatever happened to my adorable little girl with the pigtails, Carol thought to herself.

"Cindy, you have to come with us", she said out loud. "We'll all be out of the house, Alice'll be visiting her family - you can't be here on your own over Christmas."

"Well, I don't want to be around anyone else", Cindy mumbled without raising her head from the pillow.

"Oh, that's a silly thing to say, honey, think of the people who are looking forward to seeing you", replied Carol. "Listen, did you pack that pretty blue dress we got you?"

Cindy sat up. "I only packed jeans and sweaters", she sighed, staring down at the jeans she had on.

"I see you've taken your bra off", observed Carol. "I hate wearing those things", replied Cindy. "And there's no point in bringing any dresses, I'll just look like a pig-ugly heifer whatever I wear."

"Cindy, we don't have to discuss wearing dresses this minute but can you at least put your bra on?" Carol said, holding the white garment out to her daughter. "It'll make all the difference to your figure when you're older."

Cindy groaned, took the bra and shuffled away into the bathroom to put it on again. While she was in there, Mike knocked on the door. Letting him in, Carol explained the situation. Mike could remember Cindy painting the moon by which George Washington crossed the Delaware. She had given it a smiley face because, as she put it, "I thought everybody should have a nice day, even George Washington". It seemed there was very little of that sunny nature in his youngest daughter these days.

Cindy came out again, wearing her bra under her turtleneck and a scowl on her face. "Cynthia Brady", Mike asked his youngest daughter in a serious tone. "What's this I hear about you referring to yourself as a heifer?"

"It's true", protested Cindy, her blue eyes filling with tears. "There were these boys at school, and you know what they said? They said that I was such a heifer and Bobby was so skinny that I could make two of him."

"We're calling the Principal as soon as term begins", said Carol angrily. "Nobody should have to put up with that kind of treatment." Cindy stared at the floor as the tears rolled down her face. Her parents went over to her. "Cindy, can I have you looking at us?" asked Mike. She did so.

Carol took the reins. "We're sorry you've had such a hard time at school, but if we leave you behind, I think you've got a pretty good idea of how it will be", she told her. "Sure you'll have the house to yourself, but you'll just be there in your own company, reading or watching TV, and I think you're going to find one day'll be very like another."

"If you come with us, on the other hand", said Mike "you don't know how people will react to you but there'll be that element of surprise to it. I certainly don't think anyone in the family will be as cruel as those boys. And if you really have a bad time, then we'll all stay home next Christmas."

Cindy dried her tears and began to smile. "Maybe I will pack that blue dress", she said. "Hey, do you think it might snow while we're at Uncle Jeff's?"

"I'm glad you've cheered up, sweetheart", Mike putting a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, it's about time we hit the road now".


	2. The Big Bad Devil's Food Cake

After a number of miles riding along the very dull stretch of the Interstate which runs through California, Cindy's mood fell again. Carol, Marcia and Jan were asleep in the middle seat of the station wagon, while Peter and Bobby were bickering in the front seat as Mike drove and tried to keep them quiet. Cindy herself was seated on a pillow in the rear, working hard on her knitting. She was trying to make herself a baggy blue sweater, and Carol had been helping her. Putting down the knitting and staring out at the highway, Cindy couldn't help thinking that the Bradys were less of a family now, especially if you counted Alice, which Cindy did. And it wasn't just that they weren't taking Alice with them to Oregon. Alice had recently become a lot more optimistic about her relationship with her fiancé Sam, and was expecting him to name the day very soon. As Carol had pointed out, once Alice did marry Sam, she could hardly be expected to carry on living with the Bradys.

Then there was Greg, who had already moved out of the family home. Cindy could remember how forlorn she and the other kids had been once he left for college. "We don't know what to do with ourselves" they had all whined. Gradually, the five of them had become absorbed in school work and hobbies. Cindy had given up attending dance class but she enjoyed knitting quite a lot, while Peter had carried on learning the guitar after Greg started teaching him. Bobby had persevered with learning to play the keyboard, and could actually play without making an appalling racket. Marcia still danced and enjoyed craft while Jan was becoming more and more accomplished at painting and drawing.

However, it still wasn't the same without their oldest sibling to take the lead. The most annoying thing was that Greg, who had plans to become a doctor, didn't seem to be missing them at all. Whenever he wrote or rang home, he always seemed to have so much going on besides studies – friends, parties, sports, fishing trips, girls.

Cindy, on the other hand, wasn't part of the popular set at school - and, unless you counted tubby little Tommy Jamison, had never had a boyfriend. She could remember just over a year ago meeting Jerry, the infamous quarterback sneak. Marcia had introduced him to her and Bobby while they were playing on the teeter-totter. Cindy recalled what she'd said to Bobby when Marcia and Jerry had gone indoors: "All you boys think about is football. Love is a lot more important". Bobby had giggled, "How do you know? You never played either one." Sure Cindy had got him back for that – by getting off the teeter-totter so suddenly that he came down with a bang – but he'd already begun having Millicent as his girlfriend by then, and it had been a sore point with Cindy that she herself didn't have a boyfriend.

What made it worse was that Millicent had turned out to be only the first in a series of girlfriends for Bobby. A poll in the school magazine had declared him Heart Throb of the Semester, and it seemed as if all the girls in his class hankered after him. While Cindy seemed to have grown outward rather than upward, Bobby had grown a whole three inches in the last six months; and while she still had to wear her unbecoming braces, Bobby had got his removed in August. Even the teachers at school were commenting on how tall and handsome he had become. "I remember when everyone called him Shrimpo", she whispered bitterly to herself.

"What was that, Cindy?" Carol had woken up, and was looking at her quizzically. "I was saying how come this journey has to be so boring?" she replied. Marcia and Jan were waking up too. "It gets better", Carol told her. "Don't forget we're stopping over at Sacramento. Your Dad tells me that the Old Town is gorgeous."

"He gave us this to look at", said Marcia, producing a brochure from her bag. "I can't wait till we get there."

Jan started going over the journey plan. "Okay, so tonight it's Sacramento, tomorrow we pick Greg up in Eugene and then it's not too far to get to Branders Town, which is where Uncle Jeff and Aunt Louise live."

"Can I have a look at the brochure?" asked Cindy. Marcia handed it over. "Wow!" Sacramento really did look to be something else.

It was even more beautiful in real life. Greg had told Mike and Carol that he had it on good authority that Hollywell's was the best restaurant in Sacramento so they had arranged to treat the family to dinner there before going on to their hotel. Now it was evening, and the Bradys were walking through Old Sacramento. "It's so … what's the word?" asked Peter.

"Atmospheric", said Jan decidedly. "Can you imagine coming here in the days of the Gold Rush?" asked Marcia. Cindy could tell what was going through her oldest sister's mind – she was imagining herself swishing around in a crinoline and carrying a parasol. "Not everybody who came to Sacramento during the Gold Rush struck it rich, though", commented Mike. "Hey, wait for me", yelled a voice behind them. The Bradys all turned around.

"Greg!"

Greg was stood just a few feet away on the wooden walkway. Laughing, he held out his arms, and there was a tremendous clatter as they all ran towards him. Cindy reached him first, and he picked her up and spun her round. "Greg, it's so good to see you", she told him. "You too, Cindy", he replied. It was Bobby's turn now. "Hey college man", he said as Greg ruffled his hair. "You never told us you'd be here." Greg laughed. "Well, I guess we can't call you Shrimpo anymore", he told his brother. "But your voice still hasn't broken just yet."

Marcia kissed Greg on the cheek. "So tell us", she demanded, "what on earth are you doing in Sacramento?"

"It's wild, isn't it?" said Greg, laughing again. "My friend Casey's folks own the restaurant, so I got a lift back with him."

"You mean the restaurant we're going to?" asked Carol.

"Just wait till you see it", Greg told them. "And everyone has to have a slice of the devil's food cake, and I mean everyone!"

As the reunited Brady Bunch headed for Hollywell's Restaurant, Cindy fell behind them, staring down at the walkway. "What's wrong, Cindy?" asked Peter.

"I can't have devil's food cake", replied Cindy. "I've already decided I'm ordering salad, and if I do have dessert, it'll be fresh fruit. I have to think of my figure and my complexion."

Peter laughed. "Oh Cindy, it's a special occasion", he told her in a kind voice. "And even though we'll be skipping Eugene, we'll have a long drive tomorrow. I, for one, intend to eat like a horse."

"But people in the restaurant will be looking at me!" Cindy wailed. "And if they see me eating devil food's cake, they'll all be thinking 'No wonder she's such a fat, pizza-faced cow'. They'll think I don't even care about the way I look!"

"Well do you know what?" said Peter. "I won't care about how I look!" He was beginning to shout now. "I mean, it's almost Christmas, we're away from home, we've got Greg back with us – even if a wicked witch flew down from the sky and turned me into the Hunchback of Notre Dame, I'd want to enjoy myself tonight!"

"Tell the whole street, why don't you", said Marcia, turning around. "The bells, the bells", croaked Bobby, pulling a face like Quasimodo and lurching towards Peter. Cindy thought it was an ironic way for the conversation to turn. Nowadays, when she looked at herself in the mirror, the thought that popped into her head was "Cindy the Monster Girl".

Peter put his hand on her shoulder as they went into the restaurant. The sights and smells were incredible – everything she'd been trying to avoid over the past few months. Hot rich sauces, melted cheese and even a pretty waitress carrying two dishes loaded with devil's food cake. Cindy felt someone looking at her – it was Greg, and he had the biggest grin on his face. "Well now, baby sister", he asked her. "What would you most like to eat?"

"I don't know what I'm going to have for the first course", she said, smiling back. "But that devil's food cake sure looks groovy!"


	3. The Boys' Mama

It was the second day of the journey. After the excitement of visiting Sacramento, and Greg and the family meeting up, everyone was quite tired. Not only Peter but all of the Bradys had eaten like horses. After restricting herself for so long, Cindy had ordered potato and cheese soup followed by a glorious pasta dish, with the devil's food cake for dessert. And she and the rest of the family had been far too busy catching up with Greg to worry about what any of the other diners were thinking of them.

Now the border between California and Oregon was far behind the Bradys, and the rain was pouring down on the Interstate. Marcia and Jan were taking their turn in the rear of the station wagon while Cindy was in the middle sat between Greg and Peter. Mike was driving, with Bobby next to him and Carol on the other side of Bobby.

"You know, this one girl at school said she felt sorry for me because my mother had died", Peter was telling the others. "So what did you say to her?" asked Greg.

"I told her it wasn't something I thought about very much", Peter replied.

"I know", exclaimed Bobby, turning round. "We've been in a family with brothers and sisters for so long it's hard to remember when it was just Dad, Mama and three boys."

"I remember a lot of people felt sorry for us after our first Dad walked out on us", said Jan. "I went to my friend Lisa's birthday party and her mother gave me the biggest slice of cake out of everyone. Lisa was furious."

"I always told my friends they'd better not treat me any different just 'cause my mother was dying", Greg recalled, "and that if they did, I'd punch them."

Marcia giggled. "Oh, I'm Greg Brady", she teased, "I'm too tough for your sympathy."

"It just seemed to go on forever, though", said Peter. "First, Mama had cancer for a real long time and then after she died, it was like the, the…" he was searching for the word, "the nucleus of the house was gone!" Bobby didn't say anything but Cindy saw him lean against Carol in the passenger seat. Carol ruffled his hair affectionately.

"And as far as dealing with phonies were concerned, we ran the gauntlet", sighed Greg.

"So did we", said Marcia. "Oh, you poor brave dears", cooed Jan, in the voice of a sentimental lady. "You poor little angels", gushed Marcia, in the same voice.

"You just never see them cry", said Cindy, echoing her sisters' tones. "Not even little Cynthia."

"With us, it was always 'Chin up, champ'", Greg told them. "And then the grown-up in question would punch you on the shoulder." He laughed ruefully.

"I never felt like we were brave, though" Marcia admitted. "Us girls were only doing ordinary things like going to school and playing – I always thought Mom had the hardest job."

"Hey Dad", said Peter. "Isn't Branders Town the place you first met Mama?"

"That's right", replied Mike. "I was staying at your Uncle Jeff's house and there was this girl living in the neighborhood. She had these beautiful brown eyes and dark brown hair, and I thought she was an angel."

"You know, you take after her, Pete", Carol said tenderly. Peter blushed, with a shy smile on his face. Carol never seemed to get jealous when the subject of the first Mrs. Brady came up. Marcia said that not getting jealous was a sign of maturity.

"I've seen her in some of your old photographs", said Cindy. "She really was beautiful", remarked Jan.

"Can't we talk about something else?" whined Bobby from the passenger seat. He was still leaning against Carol. "Sure we can, Bob", Greg told him. "But just remember, you had a wonderful Mama, and now you've got a wonderful Mom." Carol turned around, and Greg took the opportunity to lean over and kiss her on the cheek.

Cindy hadn't really been upset when the talk had turned to her first Dad. As far as she was concerned, he was someone too far away and remote to have many memories of, let alone feelings for. She glanced behind her. Marcia and Jan looked somber. They were talking in whispers. "I haven't forgotten it", she heard Jan saying. "Well, I suppose we have to remember it was a long time ago now", Marcia said in reply. Carol and Bobby were also talking in whispers, and Cindy noticed Carol brushing away a few tears from Bobby's face. Meanwhile, Peter was staring out of the window.

Cindy glanced up at Greg, who was looking at her with a concerned expression. "I'm okay", she whispered. Her oldest brother put his arm around her and hugged her to him. Cindy smiled. No, there was no point in missing her first Dad. Mike was her Dad now, and she had Greg, Peter, Bobby and Alice into the bargain. Feeling very happy and loved, the rhythm of the wind shield wipers and the rainfall quickly lulled Cindy to sleep.


	4. An Early Present

After they reached Branders Town, everybody was a lot more cheery. It would be dark soon, but the rain clouds were far behind them and a glorious winter sunset was glowing in the sky. Cindy felt better after her nap, and rather than worrying about what people would think of her complexion and figure, she was thrilled at the prospect of seeing family. From the time Mike and Carol had married, all grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins were equally considered family by all six of the kids – Uncle Jeff was just as much Cindy's relative as Cousin Oliver was. However, this would be the first time that Carol and the girls had seen Uncle Jeff and Aunt Louise's house.

"That's the house over there", Mike told them as they pulled into a side street. "Oh, how lovely", cried Carol. "There's a hill just opposite with all these cute little houses going up it!"

"I think Uncle Jeff's house is dreamy", said Jan. It was a wonderful house, built around the turn of the century. It had been home to Jeff, Louise and their son Jeff Junior for many years. Jeff Junior, who was a few years older than Greg, was away until February serving in the Merchant Marine. Carol hoped that playing host to eight Bradys wasn't going to be too much for the couple.

"Hey, there's Uncle Jeff himself!" shouted Greg. Jeff Brady had just happened to come out of the house at that moment.

"Hello, all of you!" he yelled. All the kids greeted him excitedly. "What's all the commotion?" cried Aunt Louise, emerging through the front door as Mike parked the station wagon. Almost immediately, the family poured out, and the next few minutes were a confusion of hugs, kisses, handshakes and back slaps. "Why Cindy, you're a young lady now!" exclaimed Louise. "Whatever happened to Little Miss Curly Girl?"

"Everybody, grab your suitcases before it gets dark", hollered Mike. Jeff and Louise helped the family in with their luggage. Cindy thought the house was wonderful. Jeff and Louise took them through to the garden, which had a rustic wooden archway which Jeff had made himself. However, the living room was her favorite – there was a baby grand piano, a beautiful staircase leading to the next floor and a large fireplace with a roaring fire.

Over dinner that evening, Jeff made an announcement. "When Mike and I were growing up, and we had family over to stay", he told them, "every night at least one person had to do something to entertain all the others. So whoever's turn it was, they would recite a poem or sing a song or anything else which reflected their talents. While you're all staying here, we're going to resurrect that tradition, and tonight it's your Dad's turn."

"Alright!" crowed Greg. Bobby rolled his eyes. "Peter, we need to put our heads together after dinner", said Mike. "I think you can help me out with this one." Peter's eyes brightened.

Once dinner had been eaten and the dishwasher had been stacked, people began to settle down in the living room, where the fire was still blazing away. Louise brought in a tray of coffee, while Mike and Peter went upstairs for a few minutes and then came down again, with a book entitled 'Poems for Christmas'. "Oh Dad, you're not going to read 'Twas the Night Before Christmas', are you?" groaned Cindy.

Greg cleared his throat. "Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house / Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse", he recited in a deep voice. "Eek, eek, eek", squeaked Marcia, stirring her coffee cup noisily. "We're all too old to believe in Santa Claus anyway", complained Bobby. Mike looked displeased.

"Well, Bobby", he told his youngest son, "the poem I'm going to read is called 'The Boy Who Laughed at Santa Claus', and it's about a boy named Jabez who has some of your attitude." He sat down on a stool with Peter stood behind him and opened the book, announcing "The Boy Who Laughed at Santa Claus by Ogden Nash." Peter had the task of being the malevolent Jabez Dawes – reading all of Jabez's lines in the poem and rubbing his hands with glee as he spread the word that there wasn't a Santa Claus.

"What a brat", declared Greg once the poem came to an end and the audience began to applaud. "But the brat got his comeuppance", said Carol cheerily. "THAT'S why you shouldn't go saying you don't believe in Santa Claus, Bobby", laughed Jan. Bobby stuck his tongue out at her. "Well, if all our evening entertainment is as good as that, then we're in for a real treat this holiday", declared Louise. Cindy's heart sank. She didn't want all the attention which would come from doing a party piece when she was so zitty and heavy-looking. The kids' last performance as the Brady Six had been over a year ago, and she'd still been the cute baby sister in pigtails. This really was going to be a terrible holiday.

As the others were exclaiming over the poem, Cindy crept away unnoticed to the front door. She wanted some fresh air, and also to brood over how much she was missing Alice. Darkness had fallen by now. Standing in the porch light, it was cold enough for her to see her own breath. Cindy amused herself by pretending she was smoking a cigarette. Part of the fun lay in the fact that one of her brothers or sisters could come out at any minute and catch her fooling around.

Just then, she realized that someone had noticed her. Looking up, she saw a woman, possibly around thirty. She was wearing a purple coat and hat, and was standing under the street light.

The woman was looking at her, but in an amused way. She was quite thin and gaunt-looking, with dark hair and very pale too. However, she had a pleasant expression and she smiled at Cindy. Cindy was rarely in the mood for dealing with new people these days but she smiled back – somehow she felt she could trust this lady not to be judgmental of her appearance. Should she go over to her? She glanced down at her shoes briefly and then looked up again, but there was no sign of the lady – it seemed that she had disappeared into the shadows.

Something made Cindy go over to the street light where the woman had been standing. It looked as if she had dropped something. Cindy picked the object up and looked at it. It was a small Christmas parcel, wrapped in red and green paper and just the right size to fit into the palm of her hand. She couldn't find a name on it but there was a gift tag with a capital C on the front. C for Cindy, she thought to herself, and hurried back to the porch to unwrap it. Inside was a heart-shaped tin, the kind that she used to get in her Christmas stocking when she was a kid. Opening the tin, she discovered it was full of tiny mints.

"Cindy, come inside now, honey." It was Carol, who had opened the front door. Quickly, Cindy shut the tin and stuffed it in her pocket. The lady hadn't come back for her missing parcel. Perhaps she would another time but Cindy wasn't going to worry about that now. "Mom", she said to Carol. "I don't want to do any kind of entertainment."

"Oh, that doesn't sound like you, Cindy", her mother replied. "Listen, I'll think of something we can do together, nothing too high-falutin', just something that'll make people smile."

Cindy frowned. Then, perhaps because she felt guilty for opening the lady's parcel, she decided she'd go along with Carol's suggestion. "Try and come up with something good, won't you, Mom?" she smiled as they went back into the house.


	5. Boys Versus Girls

"Cindy, wake up! There was a snowstorm during the night!"

Cindy opened her eyes to see an excited Jan standing over her. "Come and look!" said Jan, pulling her out of bed and leading her over to the window. "Wow!" exclaimed Cindy. The whole of Branders Town was covered in the thickest snow it had seen in years. The first thing that occurred to Cindy was that the lady wasn't likely to come looking for her parcel after this. All she would be expecting to find was a tin wrapped in soggy paper. Really, Cindy had done the right thing in taking the parcel. And she didn't expect anybody to find it when it was hidden under her mattress.

"Hey, you know what?" said Greg, interrupting Cindy's thoughts. "I think someone must have known the Bradys were coming. Who would have expected it to snow the first night we were here?"

Carol insisted that none of the kids were going out in the snow until they had all eaten a good breakfast. Fortunately, breakfast that morning was good, with banana porridge and French toast. From the kitchen, they could see the garden, which looked enchanting, especially with the wooden archway all covered in snow. The yard was marked out by a small picket fence of the kind that anybody could step over. Behind the fence was a beautiful forest with enormous trees. Jeff told them the trees were mostly oak and sweet chestnut, with one or two cherry trees.

As soon as they'd finished eating, they rushed to put on their outdoor clothes and then hurried to the back door. Greg was the first to get to the door but then once he'd opened it, he turned to face them, standing in the doorway so that he blocked everyone else's way. "Greg, let us out!" Peter yelled.

"Before you get out there, I want you all to promise me one thing", Greg told the other kids.

"What's that?" asked Marcia. "That you're going to have as much fun here as you've ever had on a Christmas vacation", he said.

"We promise!" yelled the others. Greg let them outside, and while the grown-ups were still sat indoors with cups of coffee, the garden came alive with shrieks, hollers and snowballs flying all over the place. However, it wasn't too long before Jeff, along with Mike, stepped out into the yard. "We're going to need a lot more firewood if we want to keep warm for the next few days", Jeff told them. "Can we enlist you three boys to help us?"

"Sure thing, Uncle Jeff", Greg answered. Peter and Bobby agreed. "Can I help?" Cindy asked.

"I'm sorry, Cindy", said Jeff. "We're going to be working in the cold, and carrying a lot of heavy logs and branches. The trees here are quite big, you know." He and Mike went over to the shed around the side of the house to collect tools.

"What he's trying to say to you is, it's a man's job", explained Bobby with a smirk. Greg laughed. "Whoever heard of a female lumberjack?" he said to the girls. "Or a lumberjill?" added Peter. "Oh, ha ha", said Jan sarcastically. "You're so witty", chimed in Marcia.

Cindy frowned. "Forget about collecting firewood, I'm going to collect some acorns", she told the boys. "What do you need acorns for?" asked Bobby. "For you, you male chauvinist pigs", she replied.

The boys burst out laughing. "Oh Cindy, we can't keep warm this winter by you girls burning your bras", howled Greg. Cindy frowned again. If there was one thing she didn't like to think about these days, it was having to wear a bra. "What's going on?" called Mike, who was coming over to the kids with a saw and two hatchets.

"Grumpy's on the loose", muttered Bobby, with a glance at Cindy.

"It's only the latest round in the Brady battle of the sexes", Marcia explained calmly, with a glint in her eye. "Hey, Uncle Jeff", she yelled. "Do you have any brooms or shovels in the shed?"

"I've got two brooms and two shovels", Jeff replied. "Super", said Marcia, hurrying over to the shed. Jan and Cindy trailed after her. "And do you have any salt, you know, for melting ice?"

"I've got a whole sack full in this box", he said. "What's your plan?"

"We're going to clear a path to your front door", she explained. "And then we'll go up the hill opposite your house and see if the folks there want the sidewalks cleared." Jan and Cindy looked at each other and grinned.

"That's very thoughtful of you", replied Jeff. "A lot of the people living there are quite old, so I think they'd appreciate you doing that. Hey", he said, "would you mind showing me the soles of your boots? They'd need to have plenty of grip to stop you falling down."

The girls showed him the soles of their rubber boots, which were all in good condition. Jeff was satisfied that they wouldn't fall down in the snow, so the girls set off. Cindy was given a wagon to carry the sack full of salt.

Clearing the path to Jeff and Louise's front door took about ten minutes. As Jan and Cindy were finishing off, Marcia knocked on the doors of the houses on the hill and asked the people who answered whether they'd like the sidewalks cleared. Everyone she spoke to was thrilled that she'd offered. It wasn't too long before the Brady girls were climbing to the top of the hill, talking and laughing.

"I'm going to live in that house over there when I'm older", Marcia told her sisters. "With Burt Reynolds, and we'll have a girl named Melinda and a boy named Nathaniel."

"I'm going to live in the house just above it", Jan replied, "and I'll be married to Steve McQueen, and we'll have a girl named Kimberly and a boy named Shaun."

"I'm going to live in this house right at the top", said Cindy as they climbed the steepest part of the hill, "and I'll be married to Lee Majors and we'll have a girl named Alexia and a boy who won't be called Greg, Peter or Bobby!" The girls laughed even louder – they had reached the top of the hill by now. "Okay, let's show those boys what we can do", said Marcia.

Cindy set aside her wagon and grabbed the bigger of the two metal shovel. Start as you mean to go on, she thought, and attacked the sidewalk energetically, flinging the snow over her shoulder. "Be careful, Cindy ", Jan warned her. Just then, Cindy heard a crash somewhere from the bottom of the hill. With her shovel raised above her shoulder, she turned around and lost her balance. The shovel fell from her hands and she went tumbling down the steep slope. Taking care not to fall down themselves, Marcia and Jan hurried over to the place their sister had landed.

"It's horrible!" cried Cindy in between screams. The right knee of her jeans was torn away and her kneecap was covered in blood. "She's skinned it!" exclaimed Marcia. "I bet it's pretty painful, huh?"

"Cindy, try not to scream so much", Jan told her. "Look, we'll put snow on your knee", Marcia said, packing some snow together. Cindy could never remember afterwards whether she'd passed out for a minute or so but the next thing she knew was that Jan was cradling her head and her parents were gazing down at her with anxious faces. People had come out of their houses and were staring

"Sweetheart, did you hurt your head?" asked Carol, looking panicked. "It's only my knee that really hurts", replied Cindy with a sob. "I think you've had a bit of a shock as well, haven't you, Cindy?" Mike told her. "I'm going to carry you back to the house, okay?"

Carol and Jan stepped aside. "One, two, three – UP!" he said as he lifted his youngest daughter. The people were still watching as Mike began to carry her the rest of the way down the hill, with Carol and Marcia following after. Jan went ahead to tell the others. As they were nearer the bottom, it wasn't so steep now. Cindy heard murmurs of "What a shame" and "You can't be too careful in the snow, can you?". She wondered if the mysterious lady she had seen last night might be there as well but there was no sign of her.


	6. My Brother, George Washington

When they got into Jeff and Louise's house, Greg and Peter were waiting. Mike carried Cindy into the living room, where the thick curtains were drawn, and settled down with her on the couch. Carol sat next to them, stroking Cindy's hair, while Marcia and Jan seated themselves on footstools. Peter placed a bag of frozen peas on the wound while Greg brought her a mug of hot chocolate. "I put some extra sugar in it", he told her. "Sugar's good for shock."

"Thank you", replied Cindy. She had stopped crying now, and the frozen peas were helping to ease the pain.

"You're not the only one having a bad day, honey", Carol told her. "You know the boys and I went to collect firewood?" Mike asked. Cindy nodded.

"Well, that little expedition came to an end quite quickly, thanks to Bobby", said Peter.

"While the rest of us weren't looking, he started chopping down a tree with one of the hatchets", continued Greg. "We heard the hatchet go but we thought he was just hacking off branches."

"And the next thing was, we heard him yelling 'Timber!' and the tree came crashing down into the garden, right through Uncle Jeff's wooden archway and right through the picket fence!" exclaimed Peter. "He didn't realize – he thought the tree was going to fall the other way."

"But the most priceless thing about it was that it was a cherry tree!" laughed Greg. As Cindy drank her chocolate, she realized that the tree must have caused the crash which had made her lose her balance. "Do you want to see Bobby now?" he asked. "Where is he?" queried Marcia.

Greg drew back the curtain. Through the French doors, they could see Bobby chopping up the fallen cherry tree all on his own. "We thought it would be the best way to punish him", Mike explained. Greg opened one of the doors to shout "Hey, George Washington". Bobby stuck his tongue out.

"Thank you, Greg!" scolded Mike. "Take Cindy upstairs now, and see what you can do for her knee." Marcia took the bag of peas away and Greg lifted Cindy up in his arms. "So much for being a college man", he muttered to Cindy as he carried her up the stairs.

"That stings!" cried Cindy five minutes later. She was in the bathroom sitting on the edge of the tub, with one leg of her jeans rolled up. Greg had cleaned up her knee for her and now he was dabbing some liquid onto it with a cotton ball. "Be quiet now, Cindy, it's only hydrogen peroxide", he told her. "Try some of this ointment, bet that feels nicer, doesn't it?" he smiled, gently rubbing the ointment into the wound.

"Bobby may have got taller but his brain's still the size of a pea", she grumbled. "Did you hear he got Heart Throb of the Semester in our school magazine?"

"I remember him writing me about it – the Heart Throb of the Semester thing took up two whole pages", replied Greg. "Yes, it's not like you'd ever be that vain", teased Marcia, poking her head around the door. Greg aimed the cotton ball at her but Marcia disappeared before it could hit her.

"I'm going to put this on you now – you'll need to make sure you change it every day", he

advised her as he bandaged her knee. "Do you think you'll be alright?" Cindy was still in pain but she knew her big brother had taken good care of her.

"I'll be okay", she said. Greg smiled again, lifted her up and carried her over to the bathroom mirror. "There she is", he told her, "Cindy the brave."

Cindy thought she looked awful. Her acne hadn't got any better, her braces still looked hideous, and her eyes and face were red from crying. Cindy the monster girl, she thought. "Greg, I don't want to see myself", she told her brother. "Can't you just put me to bed?"

"To hear is to obey", he said in a corny-sounding voice. He carried her into the room she was sharing with Carol and the other girls and set her down on her bed. "I'll be back upstairs in a minute or two", he told her, and hurried out of the room. Cindy reached underneath her pillow for her pajamas. She found she was able to change into them without having to move her legs too much. If she wanted her tin of candy, all she would have to do was put her hand under her mattress and it'd be there but she decided to wait till after lunch. Just as she was doing up her top button, there was a knock at the door. "Come in", she called. It was Greg with some water and a bottle of painkillers.

"These don't taste very nice but they'll help you feel better", he told her as he unscrewed the bottle. "I suppose I'd better take them, then", said Cindy. "Good girl", her brother replied, shaking out two of the pills and handing them to her. She popped them into her mouth and washed them down with the water. Greg helped her wriggle under the covers and then tucked her in. "Okay, sleep now", he told her, "and that's doctor's orders." He swept out of the room, and Cindy reached under the mattress to find her candy tin. She didn't eat any of the candy – all she did was clutch the tin until she fell asleep.

She was wakened about two hours later by a knock on the door. "Come in", she said, hiding the tin under her pillow. Marcia and Jan bustled in with flushed faces and big smiles, followed by the boys. "We just finished clearing the sidewalks", Marcia announced excitedly.

"Yeah, so we showed you male chauvinist PIGS!" exclaimed Jan, looking at her brothers. "Oink oink", said Peter, in the same tone of voice one might use for 'Hardy har har'.

"But guess what else happened?" asked Marcia.

"What?" replied Cindy.

"We got talking to Mrs. Daniels who stages the Christmas pageant in the local church on Christmas Eve every year" Marcia told her, "and she said that they don't have any scenery because the man who keeps it at his house is snowed in right now, along with his family."

"Luckily they'd bought all their Christmas food the day before", interjected Jan.

"So Jan and I said that we'd go over to the church this afternoon and do some scenery for them!" finished Marcia. "How about that?" said Greg. "But you can't make scenery out of nothing", protested Bobby.

"There's a crate in Uncle Jeff's shed that we can use for the manger", Marcia replied. "And Mrs. Daniels' children have guinea pigs, so they can give us some straw; and then we'll see if Aunt Louise has any spare sheets that we can use as backdrops." The enthusiasm was catching. "Can I help?" Cindy asked.

"I'm sorry, Cindy", replied Greg. "You'll have to keep your knee rested till tomorrow at least. But I'm pretty sure you'll be able to come and watch the pageant. Just make the most of having your family at your beck and call for now, huh?" he said with a wink.

"I'm going back to sleep!" Cindy moaned, throwing the covers over her head. However, she only pretended to be sleeping. "Greg", she heard Marcia saying softly. "There's something you can do for the pageant." Cindy didn't catch the rest – she just heard Marcia whisper into Greg's ear. Who cares about that dumb old pageant anyway, thought Cindy.


	7. Cindy Brady, Brat

Of course everybody was going to think Marcia and Jan were wonderful; because of course, after a morning spent clearing the sidewalks and an afternoon at the church creating scenery, the two of them still had time and energy to prepare their entertainment for the evening; and of course Marcia could still remember the dance she had performed to the tune of 'White Christmas' at the dance recital earlier that month; and of course she had brought along her white leotard and ballet tights to Branders Town so that she could go through her dance exercises every day; and of course Jeff and Louise happened to have an instrumental version of 'White Christmas' on their record of Christmas music; so of course Jan was able to sing along to it while Marcia danced; and of course Mike, Carol, Jeff, Louise and the boys thought they did fantastically; and of course Cindy was jealous. But of course Cindy did her best not to show it as Marcia and Jan held hands and bowed while she and the rest of the family applauded.

As Mike carried her up the stairs, Cindy thought how ironic it was that when her sisters had been around the age she was now, she had looked up to them both and wished she could be like them. In her eyes, they had been gorgeous and sophisticated and graceful. Now they were even more gorgeous and sophisticated and graceful, and she was the fat clumsy monster girl sister with the zits and the braces. She'd better not have any of that candy – it certainly wouldn't improve her appearance. Meanwhile, among her brothers, Bobby had caught up to Greg and Peter in terms of looks. Why do I have to be the Brady left behind, she thought to herself.

The next day was Christmas Eve, and Cindy was able to move around the house that morning by limping. Nonetheless, her knee was still painful, and there was no question of her walking outdoors until it was time for the Christmas pageant. Even then she would have to ride in the car rather than actually walk.

However, Cindy did find out what Greg would be doing in the pageant or rather, what the boys would be doing. The family that was snowed in was also the family who performed a carol every year as part of the Christmas pageant, so Marcia had suggested to Greg that he should take their place. "Hey, Cindy", Greg asked her as she was sitting on the stairs. "How would you like to perform 'Silent Night' this evening?"

Cindy looked appalled. "You're not reforming the Brady Six for the pageant, are you?"

"It won't be all six of us", replied Greg. "See, Marcia and Jan got roped in to helping backstage, so they'll be too busy but I'm playing guitar and singing, Peter's playing second guitar and then the church has an electronic organ, and Bobby'll be playing that."

"I'm not getting up in front of all those people", said Cindy. "And it's not like I can play an instrument."

"You can sing, though", her brother reasoned.

"Who says I want to sing?" Cindy retorted in a loud angry voice. "You can't make me do anything I don't want to do!" and with that, she hobbled back up the stairs. Mike and Carol came in from the other room to see what all the fuss was about. "Why does she have to get off on being such a, a … monstrous little brat?" she heard Greg complaining. "All she does is sulk and whine. 'Oh Greg, you're such a male chauvinist pig; oh Greg, I don't want to look at myself; oh Greg, you can't make me sing at the pageant.' I was looking forward to us all doing things together and…"

"I heard all that!" Cindy hollered, before going into her bedroom and slamming the door. She limped over to her bed and lay down. She could still hear the voices from downstairs – now her parents were remonstrating with Greg. "You mustn't be too hard on her", she heard Carol saying. "For one thing, she's hurt herself; and for another, she's going through that temperamental teenage phase – and you know, there was one point when adolescence hit you pretty hard."

"That's right, do you remember your first year in high school?" asked Mike. The voices faded away – the three of them must have gone into the kitchen. Cindy's knee seemed to be hurting her even more. I'm having the worst Christmas Eve ever, she thought, and she started to cry.

She was still crying ten minutes later when Carol came into the room. "Are you ready to say sorry to Greg?" she asked. "I think Greg's about ready to apologize to you."

"I don't want to see anyone", sobbed Cindy. Carol wasn't about to take that statement too seriously. "You know, it's nearly time to eat", she replied. "Shall I bring your lunch to you here?" Cindy nodded. Lunch couldn't have been better if Alice herself had made it – it was a kind of fish pie with a mash potato topping and a creamy fish sauce underneath. Carol and Cindy ate their helpings of pie together. "We were talking about the time when Greg turned your father's den into a hippy-style bedroom for himself", Carol told her.

"Oh yes, I remember", smiled Cindy, who had stopped crying and was feeling a bit better. "And he didn't want to have anything to do with us, because he said we were just kids."

"Cindy, I hope you don't try and separate yourself off in the same way", said Carol in a soft voice. "Try and find it in your heart to forgive your brother, I'm sure he was only speaking in the heat of the moment."

"Maybe", Cindy replied, staring down at her plate. I not only look like a monster, I act like a monster too, she thought. At that point, Carol decided the best thing she could do for her daughter would be to distract her. "I've been thinking about what we could do for our entertainment", Carol told her. "Do you remember that Doris Day movie we saw on the TV?"

"You mean 'By the Light of the Silvery Moon'?" Cindy asked.

"We could do the title song from that", replied Carol. "Do you remember, Doris Day sings the main part of the chorus and Gordon McRae sings this kind of backing vocal?" Cindy shook her head but Carol continued. "So I'd sing 'By the light' and you'd sing 'Not the dark but the light.'" A smile spread over Cindy's face. "Oh yes, I think I remember", she said. "Shall we try it out after lunch?" asked Carol. Cindy nodded.

"Greg, are you there?" called Cindy as she and Carol made their way downstairs after they'd finished their lunch. Cindy had made up her mind to bury the hatchet with her brother. "You just missed him, honey", Mike told her. "He's gone over to the church with the others."

"Are they coming back for dinner?" she asked. "No, they each made themselves a packed dinner to take over to church", explained Mike. "The rehearsal process seems to be pretty intense." Cindy looked disappointed. "You'll see Greg later", Carol reassured her. She helped her over to the baby grand piano in the living room. "Now, why don't we get started on our own rehearsal?"


	8. Darkness Falls

There was another blazing winter sunset in the sky as Mike, Carol, Jeff, Louise and Cindy got ready to go to church. "Carol, I don't know how you and Alice have been coping these past few years!" said Louise as the grown-ups stood in the porch. "The five of them were making enough sandwiches to feed an army just after lunch – I had to go to the store again this afternoon."

"They didn't eat any of the meat and things set by for tomorrow, did they?" asked Carol, looking shocked.

"Oh no, well, apart from the salami and pickles", Louise told her. "My, but your kids put away a lot of food." Just as she said this, her eyes happened to land on Cindy, who appeared in the porch wearing her blue and white coat. Louise started to look apologetic but the damage was done. "I happen to be very careful about what I eat", exclaimed Cindy with a glare.

"Cindy, I can promise you that isn't what Aunt Louise meant", began Mike, but Cindy wouldn't listen. "Yes, it is!" she cried. "I wish I'd never come to Branders Town!" Carol gave Mike a leave-this-with-me look and walked Cindy over to the station wagon. The two of them sat in the front seats and Carol took Cindy's hand.

"Sweetheart, I think I know what you mean", Carol told her. "If we hadn't come here, you wouldn't have fallen in the snow and skinned your knee." Cindy gazed out of the window at the garage, where Jeff and Louise were getting into their own car, along with Mike.

"But we've had some nice times in the past few days, haven't we?" her mother continued. "You enjoyed your meal at the restaurant, and Marcia and Jan did 'White Christmas' beautifully and…"

"I'm fed up of all of you trying to make me feel fat and ugly and clumsy!" Cindy hollered, kicking the inside of the car with her good leg. "I wish I had been by myself for Christmas - I couldn't've had a worse time than the one I'm having now!" she continued, with her voice rising and her face turning red. "And Daddy said no-one would be mean to me – well, now Aunt Louise has, and I absolutely hate her!" she finished, with a final kick.

Somehow, this rant proved to be too much for Carol, and her patience snapped. "Put your seat belt on, young lady", she told her daughter. She wound down the window, shouting, "Mike, we're driving to the church on our own!" She fastened her own seat belt, then taking her car keys out of her coat pocket, she started the car. "Cindy, I think Greg was right", she scolded. "Your behavior is monstrous."

"I don't care!" yelled Cindy defiantly. "And I don't care now if I never say sorry to Greg!" Carol remained tight-lipped as she waited for Jeff to pull out in front of her – she would need to follow him to find her way to the church.

The drive to church took place in complete silence. Cindy wanted to cry but she couldn't allow herself to in front of Carol. She just thought of her candy tin, which she had transferred to her coat pocket. The car heater wasn't working, and Cindy could see her breath as Carol drove. It was even colder when they parked and Mike opened the passenger door for Cindy. In fact, the cold seemed to numb the pain in her knee. She shook her head as he silently offered her his arm, choosing to dawdle behind the grown-ups. Darkness had fallen by now but there was light coming from the church, and the sound of an organ playing. As Cindy went in, remaining a good few feet behind the others, she saw it wasn't a big pipe organ but just a small electronic one which someone was playing at the front of the church. Next to the organ was the Christmas pageant stable which Marcia and Jan had been working so hard on.

Cindy took a seat on her own, right at the back of the church. As she settled down, she noticed Mike coming towards her. "Won't you come and join us?" he asked her softly. "The boys are sitting with us." Cindy shook her head. "I'm not sure what went on between you and your mother", he told her. "But if you give her time, I expect she'll come round."

"I'm going to stay here", she replied. "Well, if you change your mind, don't hesitate to come look for us", he said, before turning round and heading back along the aisle. Cindy felt as if she was about to cry. But there was no way she could start crying where she was, even if she was right at the back of the church. Now that her knee was less painful, she could move fairly quickly out of the church again and into the churchyard.

As she went through the church door, she was glad to see it had become very quiet outside. There were no other people about – pretty much the whole town seemed to be in the church. Cindy put her hood up, took out her tin and helped herself to a few of the mints. It was then that she saw the lady in the purple coat and hat who had dropped the tin on that first night. The lady was looking straight at her. All that the youngest Brady wanted this minute was for the ground to swallow her whole. The guilt and self-pity of the last couple of days finally became too much for Cindy, and she burst into tears right in front of the lady.


	9. Angels

"What are you crying for, sweetheart?" asked the lady.

"Everything's awful", sobbed Cindy. "Everything's completely awful, and my family…" She tailed off.

"What about your family? Sit down here and tell me all about it." The lady brushed the snow away from a wooden bench and, even though the wood was damp from where the snow had been, they sat down together. Cindy wasn't sure what explanation to give the lady. At any minute, she expected the moisture to seep through her clothes but for some reason it never did. In fact, Cindy didn't feel cold at all. She was aware of the mints dissolving in her mouth. At last it came to her.

"Either they hate me or I hate them!" she blurted out, and she told the lady everything she had gone through over the last few days. There was her embarrassment over her looks and developing body; her brothers teasing her; the disappointment and frustration at hurting her knee and not being able to join in with things; her clashes with Greg, with Louise, with Carol; her own dreadful temper. Cindy was waiting for the lady to be shocked but she didn't say anything – she just listened.

After Cindy had finished, her new friend sighed and thought for a minute. "What did you say your name was?" the lady asked finally.

"It's Cindy", she replied. "Cindy the monster girl." She hadn't meant to say it but she'd thought it so often, it just slipped out.

"Well, Cindy the monster girl, perhaps you shouldn't be quite so hard on yourself", the lady said. "My name's Nickie, by the way. I'm here seeing family." The two of them shook hands. Nickie was wearing a pair of mauve suede gloves. "That's easy for you to say, that I shouldn't be so hard on myself", said Cindy argumentatively. "You're really thin, and I've got too much puppy fat."

Nickie didn't get angry or lose patience – she just smiled ruefully. "Believe me, Cindy, I preferred myself before I lost all this weight. I got really ill, and it just fell away. Terrible", and she shook her head. Cindy sighed.

"So tell me", said Nickie, "do you think you're a monster on the outside or the inside?"

"Both!" replied Cindy. "I'm a zitty, ugly heifer on the outside; and I flew off the handle with my mom and my brother, and they both said I was monstrous, so that makes me a horrible monster on the inside. And what's that thing they call jealous people?"

"I think you mean green-eyed monsters", Nickie said. "Yes, I'm one of those", confessed Cindy, and she started to cry again. "I'm jealous of my brother Bobby because he's really popular with the girls and none of the boys at our school even look twice at me. And I'm damn jealous of my sisters because everyone thinks they're talented and gorgeous and super-wonderful." Cindy described how Marcia and Jan had cleared the sidewalks, performed 'White Christmas' and helped with the pageant.

"I see", said Nickie.

"But they weren't always such angels, you know. I remember when Jan used to play stupid jokes on people. And Marcia got the lead in the school play once, and she started acting really big-headed. In the end, they gave the part to another girl."

"I bet she still has moments of being big-headed", laughed Nickie. "Cindy, don't make the mistake of trying to be like an angel yourself", she continued in a more serious voice. "Because it's not your job to be an angel. God made angels and God made humans – he never expected one to be like the other." Nickie took Cindy's hand in her own. "Trust me; I know what I'm talking about. Your job in this world is to be a good human being. And you can start doing that by admitting you're never going to be Little Miss Perfect."

Cindy stared down at the ground. She realized she wasn't a monster girl – she was just an ordinary girl who had over-reacted. She looked up again at Nickie.

"I'm going to have to say sorry to Mom and Greg and Aunt Louise", she said. "But I don't know if I can."

"Shall I come into the church with you?" suggested Nickie. "I'll stay a few paces behind, so you'll know I'm there."

"Yes please!" Cindy replied. Nickie took her hand and they stood up together and went over to the church doorway. Once they were inside, they let go of each other's hand and Cindy went ahead. Taking off her hood and glancing over her shoulder, she saw Nickie was about four paces behind. The light in the church was dim now, and the congregation was singing 'Oh Little Town of Bethlehem'. A large group of children dressed as angels were taking their places in front of a backdrop showing a starry sky. Cindy could see her sisters, dressed in ordinary jeans and sweaters, holding a few of the smaller and shyer angels by the hand.

Mike, Carol, Jeff, Louise and the boys were all together in a pew towards the back of the church. Slipping inside the empty pew behind them, Cindy was pleased to see that Greg, Carol and Louise were all standing next to each other. Quickly, she nudged each one in the back and then whispered "I'm sorry" as they all turned around.

Louise smiled and took her hand. "Someone should have banged our heads together", admitted Greg, and he ruffled Cindy's hair affectionately. "We're all sorry, Cindy", said Carol tenderly, and kissed her. "Why honey", she said, drawing back suddenly. "You're freezing cold! Boys, let Cindy come into the pew with us." The boys made way for Cindy, who stood between Greg and Carol.

"Oh come to us, abide in us, our Lord Emmanuel." As the last notes of the organ died away, Cindy turned around to see Nickie on her own a few pews away with a beaming smile on her face. The congregation sat down to watch the next part of the pageant - the shepherds scene. Marcia and Jan had to hush a few of the angels and stop them from wriggling. By contrast, the boys were very discreet in filing out of the pew and taking their places by the stable. The minister handed Greg and Peter their guitars.

As the scene came to an end, a spotlight fell on Greg, and he gently picked out a few bars before launching into 'Silent Night'. On the second verse, Peter joined in on second guitar, creating a fuller sound. Bobby joined in on the organ for Verse Three "Cindy", whispered Carol, "do you have any tissue?" Cindy looked up to see her mother brushing away a tear. She felt in her pocket and found some clean tissue, which she handed to Carol. Just then something made her turn around once more to look at Nickie. Nickie was staring intently at the three boys, and although she wasn't crying, her face had the saddest expression that Cindy had ever seen.


	10. When the Boys Were Small

"Just get Dr. Porter to put you on a course of anti-biotics." The pageant was over now, and while the family waited in the church for Marcia and Jan to finish up behind the scenes, Greg was giving Cindy advice on how to deal with her acne. "And make sure that you take all the pills she prescribes for you, even after your complexion clears up." Cindy nodded. She caught other snippets of conversation from her relatives – Peter and Bobby admitting to Louise that it was the first time they'd played instruments in front of an audience; Jeff saying to Mike and Carol that thanks to the boys, they'd had their entertainment for the evening. Cindy herself was wondering where Nickie had gone. After the minister had thanked everyone for coming, she had looked around but she hadn't seen her in the pew towards the back, and there'd been no sign of her since. Perhaps she crept out right after 'Silent Night', thought Cindy.

Just then, Marcia and Jan hurried out from the vestry to greet the others. "That was a lot of fun", sighed Marcia, "but boy, some of those kids are a handful."

Jan grinned. "At least we're not the ones who have to put them to bed on Christmas Eve", she said. "That reminds me", Jeff told them. "I have a few photos from the last time your family spent Christmas with Louise and me – I can show you all when we get home."

"That must have been before us girls became Bradys", said Carol. "Aha!" giggled Marcia. "We're going to see pictures of the boys when they were little and cute", and she patted Bobby's cheeks. "Oh lay off, will you, Marcia?" complained Bobby.

After they'd got back, Louise dug out a photo album and placed it on the coffee table. Cindy flicked through the pages until she found a selection of pictures showing the boys when they were a lot younger. "Come and have a look, everybody", she said, and they all gathered round. "That's Mama!" exclaimed Peter, pointing at a picture of the first Mrs. Brady sitting on the stairs with a small Greg, an even smaller Peter and a tiny Bobby. They were all wearing night clothes. "I remember that!" said Greg. "It was Christmas Eve, and we were too excited to get to bed."

"I've got to say, Greg, it made me appreciate the fact that we only have one child", observed Louise. Cindy laughed, and turned to the next page. "There's Mama again", said Bobby but he sounded quite choked. In this picture, she was sitting in the backyard in Clinton Avenue with Mike and the boys but compared to the last picture, she looked appallingly haggard and thin. "That was about a month or two before she died", explained Mike. "Poor Mama", sighed Greg. Cindy was shocked into silence. The thin woman gazing out from the photograph, completely unrecognizable from the last picture, was Nickie. Next to the picture was an In Memoriam card bearing the name 'Nicole McAllister Brady'.

I'm so dumb, thought Cindy. She had seen pictures of the boys' Mama before, and she had known that her name was Nicole but she simply hadn't made the connection. One other thing that bugged her was that she'd always thought if she ever saw a ghost, she would know it was one straight away. Nickie had seemed too much like an ordinary person, and there hadn't been anything particularly strange about Cindy's meeting with her. No, wait – she hadn't gotten damp from sitting on the bench. That was definitely weird, Cindy decided.

And who could she talk to about it? It wasn't as if any of the family seriously believed in ghosts. But she felt as if she had to say something to somebody. She waited until later that evening, when her brothers and sisters were playing Monopoly with Jeff, and Carol and Louise were in the kitchen baking pies for the next day. After helping in the kitchen for a while, Cindy put on her coat and went to find her father, who was in the garage. Pretty much all of the pain had gone from her knee by this time. Mike was putting the final touches to a diorama he was making as his Christmas present to Carol. It was inspired by her favorite Degas paintings, and showed a stage with ballerinas performing while other dancers waited in the wings. As she went to stand next to him, he glanced up at her and smiled.

"I'm glad you were able to make your apologies back then", he told her.

"It's a lot better now that I have", Cindy replied. "What happened was, I met your …" she hesitated, "I met this lady who told me I should admit to myself that I was never going to be Little Miss Perfect."

"I've known for a long time that none of you kids are ever going to be perfect", laughed Mike, and kissed his daughter on the cheek.

Cindy moved to where she could see the figures performing on the model stage. She was now looking forward to singing with Carol tomorrow evening, and she suspected the rest of Christmas Day would be wonderful too. However, she couldn't help feeling sorry for Nickie. I thought I was the Brady left behind, thought Cindy. But really, it's her. Nickie had been watching the boys perform and they hadn't even known their Mama was there.

"Cindy", said Mike, interrupting her thoughts. "It's time you went to bed now."

"But I'm too excited to go to sleep!" she giggled, pretending to be a naughty child and bouncing up and down. "Go!" replied Mike, jerking his thumb towards the garage door. "Goodnight Daddy", she laughed, and hurried out through the door and back into the house again.


	11. The Magazine and the Book Report

"I'm glad we're friends again", Millicent said to Cindy as they walked home from school one January afternoon. Cindy hadn't wanted much to do with Millicent over the last semester – especially as Millicent was seen as one of the prettiest girls in class – but she had begun to realize that they still had a lot of things in common that were more important than what was deemed 'attractive'. "Hey, what did you think about that magazine that Crystal showed us in recess?"

Cindy thought back to the article they had read. It was called 'We Spoke to the Spirits – and We Regretted It'. It was about three teenage girls who had experimented with a Ouija board, and it appeared to be warning other teenagers against doing the same. "I think they were just trying to scare everybody stupid", Cindy replied. She had been thinking a lot about ghosts and the spirit world since Christmas, and she'd realized there could be a lot of phoniness attached to these subjects. She still hadn't told anybody about her encounter with Nickie, and she now thought that she never would. Either people would laugh at her; or, if they did believe her, they would probably be stupid about it, like the girls in the magazine.

"I guess you're right", said Millicent thoughtfully. "Well, goodbye Cindy", she smiled as they reached the turning which led to her home. "Don't do any silly things – don't speak to the spirits!"

"I never do silly things!" Cindy giggled, as they went their separate ways. Before she reached home, she stopped at a news stand and bought a copy of the magazine she and Millicent had been discussing. Once she was alone in her bedroom, she re-read the article carefully and then took a page from her writing set and began writing:

"I am 13 years old and I just read your article about speaking to the spirits", she wrote. "I don't think it's a good idea for anyone to actually try to contact ghosts through Ouija boards and suchlike, because nobody knows what's out there; but speaking from experience, I think well-meaning spirits sometimes try to contact us without our doing anything. You probably don't need any great gift or knowledge to be able to see or hear them – it's more about what they themselves have to say and how much they want to say it." Signing herself "Girl from the Suburbs", she mailed the letter to the magazine.

After it had been printed on the magazine's letters page, she happened to overhear some girls discussing the letter while she was working on a book report in the library.

"She sounds such a dummy", one girl commented. "Oh, I'm 13 years old; oh, a ghost got in touch with me!"

"Oh, I'm speaking from experience!" mocked another girl. Cindy had to remind herself that she was anonymous on the letter page, and that the girls would have no way of knowing that the person who wrote the letter they were picking apart was sitting right across from them. She turned her attention to her book report, which was on Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'.

"At the end of the book," she wrote, "some people laugh at Scrooge because he has changed so much. However, he understands that nothing good happens in the world without some people laughing about it. He also realizes that what is most important is that he is a happy person instead of being a bitter and twisted one like he was before."

Putting her paper away safely, she collected her things together and hurried out of the library. Marcia was waiting outside in the convertible to give her a lift home. "Hi Marsh", she greeted her sister. "Guess what?"

"What?" replied Marcia.

"I'm going to get an A on my book report!" announced Cindy gleefully. "Good for you!" said Marcia warmly. The two sisters smiled at each other, and then Marcia started up the convertible and drove them both home.


End file.
